Yesterday my car started going crazy on me.... i was driving down the street when my car died.. it kinda backfired too right about the time it died.. i didnt really hear any more noises because my radio was on. I pulled over and checked the plugs and wires and stuff just to make sure they were on. It took a few secs but it finally cranked. I thought i was in the clear, i drove about a quarter mile, the car spooled up but had really no power. I hit a bump, not sure if this has to do with that or not but as i hit the bump the car died again..I tried to start it, it finally started for a split second and it backfired .. After that it didnt want to start again. I had to get it towed to my house. I checked and the intank fuel pump is working but it still doesnt wanna crank. The distributor cap and rotor is fairly new, and i put new spark plugs in about a week ago. The plug wires arent stock and arent very old either.. I have no clue where to start looking.. any sugestions? thanks guys...

 

pull ur spark plugs and check those for any insight? possibly timing is off, is ur distributor loose? did u gap the spark plugs correctly when u put them in and are they in there reasonably tight maybe one backed out, umm fuel injector issue, pull them and clean them if u know how, if the starter is working properly and its not kicking in then its gonna be either fuel/air/or electrical, so begin checking each system air is easy check ur air filter make sure that is fine and no crap is going into the intake, then check electrical, distributor cap and rotor, spark plugs plug wires, my plug wires come loose and there is a serious lack of power once i loose the connection on a plug, umm then move into fuel, injectors, fuel rail, pressure regulator fuel filter etc. whens the last time u replaced the fuel filter? and are u using a higher grade gas with the turbo or just regular possibly u got bad gas thats causing detonation and backfire, was the idle low or was the car just very hesitant and sluggish b4 it died? good luck

 

how would i know if the dist cap and rotor is bad? The fuel filter isnt that old.. 93 is the only gas i pump in it.. i just changed the spark plugs so i definetly want to make sure they are in tight..I got the timing done a few months ago, The timing is a few degrees back... my plugs are gapped to .028 i think... one of my spark plug wires broke, so i need new ones. not sure if that has anything to do with it. because i swaped the broken one out with a stock one and its still not starting..The first time i got it to start back up it drove for about 4 mins but it had a big big lack of power, it still spooled up but was really really weak..The last time i started it, it was very hesident and sluggish the last time it died..

 

if u put the cap and rotor on and its not wiggling around it should be fine if it was just done recently, ive seen it not tightened down and the timing went back and forth, what do u mean the spark plug resistor broke? how did it break and why? maybe u have a more serious engine problem if ur getting mechanical damage to a spark plug. spark plugs are one of the most important factor on ur engines performance so make sure they in very good condition, replace any if bad or worn, maybe a cylinder is out also, do a compression check on the engine see if something comes up with that but possibly a cylinder wasnt firing due to the spark plug??? check and see if ur throwing any ecu codes and possibly reset ur cars ecu and start it up see if u get any difference. when u turn ur key to the on position do u hear the fuel pump kick on?

 

the spark plug wire is what i mean that went bad on it.. the metal prong that connects to the spark plug itself broke off..I dont have any check engine lights coming on at the moment...i think im going to just replace the spark plug wires and the dist & rotor button just to be on the safe side..When i turn the key to the on position i hear the fuel pump kick on and the fuel pressure is at 40 psi..Would there be any signs that i would notice if the dist cap needed to be replaced?

 

cap and rotor just makes it a better connection because the bridging of the spark in the distributor assemby eventually causes wear and the electrode receeds as its worn out and eventually the spark gets weaker and weaker and then can no longer bridge the distance needed for a good connection. first of all check out the cylinder condition, turn the car on and one at a time pull out each spark plug wire off the spark plug, if u dont notice a difference when u pull out the wire that particular cylinder has a problem, if its an equal change on all cylinders that means there is a more general problem affecting all cylinders post ur results and we'll go from there

 

turn the ignition on? because the car wont start... i might have found the problem.. i took the dist cap off and somehow the screw for the rotor came off.. it looked like it chewed some of the plastic up.. i got a new one and im going to change it soon.. i hope nothing major is wrong with it..

 

Sounds like your Distributor could be bad. Have you tested for spark? Take out one plug and put it in the wire and hold the plug close to the body metal, have someone crank the car, do you see a spark? If so your Dist is probably good. To test for fuel I would loosen the fuel filter hose and see if gas pours out when turned to the accessory 2 position. If that works perhaps check your injections. However usually for those your engine will throw a code, do you have a check engine light?

 

i found out what it was... somehow the screw on my rotor came off.. while it did that it ate some of the plastic up on that cover around the rotor... i got another one and put it in.. started up like new.. im going to drive it later and see if its good... thanks guys..